Barrack and Michelle Obama Sign $60 Million Book Deal for Rights to their new Memoirs

Just before leaving the White House, Obama revealed that he will rest and then write after he leaves office. Now, only weeks after leaving, the former president and his wife, Michelle, who are working separately on their new books have gotten an unbelievable, unprecedented book deal worth $60 million. The right to their book was purchased by Penguin Random House in a joint publishing deal. Reports from The Financial Times reveal that bidding had surpassed $60 million, however, the Obama’s chose the Penguin because they had published Barrack’s previous three memoirs.

This $60 million deal signed by the Obama’s is the biggest any author has ever been paid for a single book. It overshadows the $15 million Bill Clinton received for his memoir My Life, the $10 million deal George W. Bush got for Decision Points, the $14 million Hillary Clinton got for her book Hard Choices and the $500,000 Donald Trump received for his book The Art of the Deal.

It even surpasses the $15 million Barrack earned from all three of his previous books (Dreams from My Father released in 2004, The Audacity of hope, released in 2006 and a children’s book, Of Thee I Sing: A Letter to My Daughters, released in 2010).

A large portion of the book deal price is for Michelle’s memoir, especially because this will be the very first she will ever release, thereby making her deal the highest amount ever paid for a literary debut in history. It is believed that her book will be a huge success considering that many around the world are undoubtedly eager to hear about her life prior to and while in the White House.

As part of the deal, Penguin will donate $1 million to a charity in Obama’s name.

Speaking about the deal, the chief executive of Penguin Random House, Markus Dohle, revealed in a statement that he was thrilled to continue their partnership with Obama.

“We are absolutely thrilled to continue our publishing partnership with President and Mrs. Obama. With their words and their leadership, they changed the world, and every day, with the books we publish at Penguin Random House, we strive to do the same.”

Dohle continued:

“Now, we are very much looking forward to working together with President and Mrs. Obama to make each of their books global publishing events of unprecedented scope and significance.”